I am always looking for easy, fun and healthy snacks to give my kids after school…and, quite honestly, for them to snack on on their way out the door in the morning if they haven’s had time to eat a real breakfast.

Making apple chips is surprisingly simple and, though I wish that I had one of those handy-dandy dehydrator gizmos, doesn’t require anything more complicated in the way of tools than an oven and a cookie sheet.

I like to cut the core the apples and cut them in circles, because I think they’re more fun to eat that way.  If you’d rather cut them in slices, that could work just as well. I like to make a bunch at a time because, though this recipe couldn’t be more simple, it does take time and patience.

Oven-Dried Apple Chips

2-3 large apples

2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Core apples and slice thinly. (See note above about shapes.  You can also decide whether or not you want to peel your apples–dehydrated apple skin may be hard to chew and get stuck in the throat of young children.)

Place apple slices in a single layer on lined cookie sheets and sprinkle with optional cinnamon.

Bake for 3-4 hours, turning slices once or twice.  Sprinkle other side with cinnamon if you want to.

Turn off oven and leave apples in for another couple of hours or overnight so that they can dry out fully.

When totally crispy, keep in a tightly closed container. They should keep for about a week.